Masterpieces of French Painting

Virtue and Vice at the Grand Palais
A 1.5-hour guided tour

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Our 1.5-hour guided visit—led by a specialist in French art—will focus on the crème de la crème of 200 years of French painting.

Our chosen theme Virtue and Vice will make the paintings' meanings more vividly accessible. It will also introduce you to the major cultural debates of the period—what and who was both good and bad in painting?

You will follow the transformation of subjects deemed appropriate for art, from the virtue of deeply-felt religious and mythological subjects to the vice of what were politely called “the loves of the Gods”—contemporary garden parties, and fashionable Parisiennes in various states of dress (and undress!).

You’ll see the gulf of ideas separating the lofty, moralizing allegories of Poussin from the flirtatious, racy garden parties of Watteau. This push and pull between virtue and vice continued well into the 1700s. Humble subjects by Chardin— such as the Woman Peeling Turnips—were celebrated by the Enlightenment philosopher Diderot as a moral triumph. But Boucher’s lusty Venuses were still a collector’s favorite. We’ll study the two contrary visions side-by-side in this exhibition.

We’ll also see how attitudes towards nature evolved as well. In the 1600s landscapes were filled with religious episodes or historic battles. These stage sets for grand events were replaced in the 1700s by bucolic, picturesque visions that favored country folk instead. Can we see the deep origins here of a long process that would ultimately lead to the Impressionists?

Reserve your art voyage through the "Golden Age" French painting, before these gems travel back to their German owners.

Practical Information:
The price of the tour is €105 for individuals, or €90 per person for parties of two or more. 4 person maximum.

Tours are available afternoons, except on Tuesdays and May 1, 2005. Please specify which time slot when reserving:

1:00pm to 2:30pm
3:30pm to 5:00pm

Tickets will be purchased in advance for you (no waiting in line), and are included in the price of the tour.
Book this tour

Read more about Pamela Warner, the art historian who designed this Paris Muse tour.

Read more about the exhibition at the Grand Palais site.

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